[combusean]

^ The Government Property Lease Excise Tax is a common incentive for new developments in redevelopment areas downtown. The developer transfers the property to the city once constructed and pay a lease rate, the Excise Tax, that would be significantly cheaper than they would otherwise pay in property taxes. The lease term is as many as 30 years. The money is deposited into the Downtown Community Reinvestment Fund or something like that typically. I don't know what comes out of that fund. Obviously nothing tangential.

The GPLET is used *all* over downtown (Cityscape, AZ Center, Freeport McMoran, Luhrs I think, the Wyndham was looking for it to redevelop their property) and partly explains the vastness of the city-owned property downtown. It significantly shortchanges local districts by removing those properties off the tax rolls and seems to entrench an inferiority complex. Tempe used the GPLET once for West Sixth and I've never heard it used in Scottsdale or anywhere else.

As for the Concord Eastridge project itself, I've been wondering what's up with it. The For Sale signs are still on the lot. I am disappointed that there is only going to be 5,000 sqft of retail. For about a 110,000 sqft of lot that's not much.